Comcast service is already ridiculously expensive at $114.95 per month (for their “best buy” most popular high-speed package). Consider that in Kansas City, Google provides 1 gigabit per second (Gbps) for $70 per month — plus local taxes and fees. Why charge so much when Comcast’s gross profit margin on Internet service is 97 percent, according to Bernstein Research?

Comcast will urge the city to make regulatory and permitting concessions in the upcoming negotiations. How about this deal: The city will make concessions to the first Internet service provider (ISP) that obtains financing, commits to build “Fiber” to the home and provides gigabit speeds for $70 a month.

Finally, ISPs are consistently ranked among the worst companies in America in terms of customer satisfaction — lower even than airlines or insurance companies. Service has a way of deteriorating under monopolies.

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